Pump system and control



J m 24, W5@ 6. c. DAVIS 2,49%571 PUMP SYSTEM AND CONTROL Filed July 31, 1944 3 Sheets-Sheet l Jivrweyg Jan. 24-, W5@

G. C. DAVIS PUMP SYSTEM AND CONTROL Filed July 31, 1944 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Jam 3%, 119% G. c. DAVIS 294959571 PUMP SYSTEM AND CONTROL Filed July 31, 1944 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 E E g .36

V as 1 a, m t m h-l t L; 77 1 l a r 1 {5 I I l i g *W f five/7507" fieazye Cnflaya's A m $0 Patented Jan. 24, 1950 all PU'IHP' SYSTEM AND CONTROL George C. Davis, Oak Park, 111., assignor to Davis Regulator Company,v Chicago 11., a corporation of Illinois Application July 31, 1944, Serial No. 547,406-

6 Claims. 1

This invention relates to a pump system or assembly and to a. means for controlling it; It has for one object to, provide means for controllin the action of a pump which may draw liquid from several diiierent tanks to. a single source of discharge, and. it has for another object to provide means for controlling the action of the pump in response to changes in the level of the tanks.

A still further object is to provide means for automatically stopping the pump when the level in any one of the tanks falls: below a predetermined limit.

Another object is to provide means for controlling the action of a pump: drawing gas from a plurality of tanks and containers and. to accomplish the same sort ofcontrol of the pump as that just mentioned.

A still further object is to provide automatic means for stopping the withdrawal of gas by means of a pump when, the level of liquid in any one of the several tanks has fallen to a predetermined limit.

Other objects will appear from. time to time throughout the specification and claims.

This invention is illustrated more or less (112- grammatically in the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a diagrammatic illustration of the system, embodying four tanks, 2. single pump and a single controlvalve;

Figure 2 is a vertical section taken on an enlarged. scale and showing a suitable valve;

Figure 3 is a fragmentary view somewhat similar to Figure 2, showing a modified form of valve; and Figure 4 is a diagrammatic view illustrating a modification of. the assembly of Figure 1 in which the tanks are mounted on difierent levels. I

Like parts are indicated bylike characters throughout the specification and the drawings.

As shown in Figure 1, a plurality of pipes I lead from several wells and are. connected each to a tank 2 :by means ofa connection 3.

Each of the tanks 2 is arranged. to discharge into a single pipe 4. This pipe is connected to each of the tanks by connections 5 within which valves indicated generally at 6 may be arranged. The valves may be of any desired type and may be manually operable by the handles or levers shown.

The pipe 4 leads to a main pipe 1 in which. a valve is situated. This valve will be described below. The pipe 1 leads. to a pumping unit indicated diagrammatically and referred to generally by the numeral 8. A motor 9 which may be an internal combustion engine serves to drive the pump. Liquid is discharged from the pump to a station or: other suitable point through a pipe Ill.

The details of the valve. and valv assembly will now be described. A housing. which includes a lower portion Ma and an upper portion Ilb is connected to the pipe I by means of a valve housl-tcwhich is provided with suitable connections it and. 13.

Within the space defined by the housin sections lid and Nb is mounted a float M. A valve i5 is connected to the float M by any suitable means. As shown, a rod [6 is connected to the valve 15 and to the float M. Suitable valve seats l 'l', H are formed in the member 58 within the housing Ho. The housing Hc, together with the portion. !.-8, provides an inlet pipe I 9 and an outlet pipe 20 for the flow of liquid. A second outlet pipe 21 is. provided, by means of which liquid may flow from the interior of the housing I I0 into the float chamber and thus within the housing sections I laand l lb.

The upper housingsection Ilb shown is closed bya member 22 which is provided with a perforation 23. A slidable member 24 is mounted withinthe perforation 23 and may be fluted or otherwise irregularly shaped. The member 22 is provided, =a.t its lower end, with a valve seat 25 against which a valve member 26 carried by the fluted member 24 may be seated. At its upper end the member 24- is also provided with a valve seat 21 against which a valve member 28 may be seated. It is shown so seated in Figure 2. A hood-like member 29 is fixed at the upper end of the member 24 and. outside of the valve portion 28 and overlies,- the member 22 in all positions of adjustment of the member 24, thus preventin the entrance of water or other liquids and of solid foreign matter into the perforation 23 of the member 22.

One means for stopping the-pump is illustrated diagrammatically. As shown in Figure 1, this comprises a lead-off pipe 30' connected to the pipe I on the. downstream side of the valve which is enclosed within the, housing Ho. The pipe 30 is connected toa housing 3| within. which a pressure-actuated cut-oil. switch is mounted. This is not illustrated in detail, as its details form no essential part Of the invention. Such cut-01f switches are well-known and readily available on the. market. They comprise pressure-responsive means for operating an electrical switch. The switch is connected to wires 32 and 33 which lead to the ignition. controlling means 34 of the internal. combustion engine 9. The efiect of this device is to permit the ignition circuit to remain closed under one pressure condition within the pipe I and to cause it to be opened or grounded and thus to stop the engine during other pressure conditions in the pipe I.

The modified form of valve housing illustrated in Figure 3 is intended primarily for use where the tanks which are controlled by the system are not all on a single level and where it is necessary to stop the pump automatically when the level of liquid in the highest tank has reached a pre- I is inserted, and it passes through a sleeve or tube 31 which is integral with the float. Adjustin nuts 38 and 39 are positioned on the rod 36 and by means of them the float may be adjusted up or down on the rod 36.

The assembly of Figure 4 has not been re-described because, except for the modifications in the valve housing and float construction, the parts are unchanged. For purposes of simplification, there is included in the assembly of Figure l a second pair of wires 40 and 4|. These lead to a pump engine which operates in connection with a series of gas tanks. These tanks will be similar to the tanks shown in Figures 1 and 4 and will be connected to the same wells or sources of gas as those to which the liquid tanks 2 are connected. By connecting the gas and the liquid pumping systems to the same ignition cut-off switch, the

mechanism will operate to stop the gas pump at the same time that the mechanism shown operates to stop pumping of liquid.

One important use of the device of this invention is in connection with oil wells. It may be used as shown in Figure 1, where only oil is to be considered. Sometimes, however, gas will be present and will be piped to tanks so that from one well oil is being pumped to one tank and gas is being pumped to another tank. Where that is the condition, it is necessary to stop pumping gas at the same time that the pumping of oil is stopped, and the mechanism shown in Figure 1 is suitable for this purpose. The float valve will act in response to the oil level and will cut oif the pump, thus stopping pumping from the entire system.

Although I have shown an operative form of my invention, it will be recognized that many changes in the form, shape and arrangement of parts can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention, and my showing is therefore to be taken as, in a sense, diagrammatic. In particular, the means for actuating the switch contained in the housing 3| may be widely varied. A pressure-actuated means has been suggested above. Such a means may be liquid pressure or gaseous pressure, and the expressions pressureactuated and pressure-responsive are to be taken as meaning members or assemblies which conducted to the tank in any manner.

with the pipe I and on the downstream side of the float chamber defined by the members Ila and Nb, and in that case the switch in the housing 3! would be operated by the movement of a float in such second float chamber. A second float chamber, if one were used, could be of substantially the same design as that shown in Figure 2 and hence its showing need not be repeated.

The use and operation of this invention are as follows:

Considering first the operation of the device in the form shown in Figure 1, it is to be understood that each tank is connected to a well, and oil is When pumping is to take place, one or more of the valves 6 is opened. When this occurs, oil or other liquid flows into the valve housing and raises the float, thus opening the valve [5 and permitting liquid to flow into the pipe 1 and to affect by pressure the ignition cut-off switch in the housing 3|. The pumping can now start. It may be started manually or automatically, and once started will continue to operate until the level in one of the tanks has fallen so that suflicient liquid is no longer present in the valve housing, and in that case the float sinks and the valve I5 is closed. The pump no-w continues for a brief interval and reduces the pressure on the pipe I to the point necessary to operate the ignition cut-off switch and the switch therefore acts to break the ignition circuit and to stop the pumping engine. The operator, noticing this, sooner or later, will take the necessary steps to replenish the tanks which have been emptied.

If all of the tanks are on one level, they may be operated together and the pumping engine will not be cut off until the level in each of the tanks has been lowered to the same point. If, as shown in Figure 4, the tanks are on a different level, the pumping engine will be stopped when the level of liquid in the highest tank has been reduced to the predetermined limits. It is to be understood that if no means of the sort shown herewith are provided and the pump continued to operate after one or more of the tanks had been emptied below a predetermined limit, air would be carried into the pump line and would interfere with the opera tion of the pump and with the flow of liquid. It is vital that this be prevented from occurring, and one of the important objects of the invention is therefore to stop the pumping engine and to stop the pump before the supply of liquid flowing to the pump has been exhausted.

Under certain conditions, such as outlined in Figure 4, the valve float might be set to operate the valve only when the level of liquid in the low est tank has been reduced to a predetermined limit. Under certain conditions and with certain types of tanks, it would be satisfactory to permit the pump to operate as long as any liquid is being supplied to it and under those conditions the tanks might be successively emptied and air would not flow to the pump until the lowest tank has been emptied or approximately emptied.

I claim:

; 1. A liquid-containing reservoir, a conduit so positioned and connected as to receive liquid flowing under the influence of gravity therefrom, a valve adapted selectively to open and clos the conduit, a float chamber in connection with the conduit between the valve and the reservoir, 9. float in the chamber, a connection between the valve and the float adapted normally to hold the valve open and to close the valve when the level of the liquid in the chamber reaches a predetermined minimum, a pump and means for driving it, a suction conduit between the pump and the valve, a control device communicating with the suction conduit between the pump and the valve adapted to stop the operation of the pump when the pressure in the suction conduit reaches a predetermined minimum.

2. A liquid-containing reservoir, a conduit so positioned and connected as to receive liquid flowing under the influence of gravity therefrom, a valve housing having a ported wall defining on one side a supply chamber in communication with the conduit, and on the other side a discharge chamber, a float chamber housing mounted on the valve housing in direct connection with the supply chamber therein, a float in the float housing, a valve adapted to open and close the ports in the wall, and a connection between the valve and the float whereby the float normally holds the valve open but closes the valve when the level of liquid in the float chamber reaches a predetermined minimum, a pump and means for driving it, a suction conduit between the pump and the valve and in communication with the exhaust chamber in the valve housing, a control device communicating with the suction conduit between the pump and the valve adapted to stop the operation of the pump when the pressure in the suction conduit reaches a predetermined minimum.

3. A liquid-containing reservoir, a conduit so positioned and connected as to receive liquid flowing under the influence of gravity therefrom, a valve adapted selectively to open and close the conduit, a float chamber in connection with the conduit between the valve and the reservoir, a float in the chamber, a connection between the valve and the float adapted normally to hold the valve open and to close the valve when the level of the liquid in the chamber reaches a predetermined minimum, a pump, a motor for driving it, a suction conduit between the pump and the valve and in communication with the discharge chamber in the valve housing, a pressure-actuated switch adapted, under certain conditions, to stop motor operation, a connection between said pressure-actuated switch and the suction conduit between the pump and the valve whereby, when the pressure in the suction conduit reaches a predetermined minimum, the switch is operated to stop motor operation.

4. A liquid-containing reservoir, a conduit so positioned and connected as to receive liquid flowing under the influence of gravity therefrom, a valve housing having a ported wall defining on one side a supply chamber in communication with the conduit, and on the other side a discharge chamber, a float chamber housing mounted on the valve housing in direct connection with the supply chamber therein, a float in the float housing, a valve adapted to open and close the ports in the wall, and a connection between the valve and the float whereby the float normally holds the valve open but closes the valve when the level of liquid in the float chamber reaches a predetermined minimum, a pump and means for driving it, a suction conduit between the pump and the valve and in communication with the exhaust chamber in the valve housing, a control device communicating with the suction conduit between the pump and the valve adapted to stop the operation of the pump when the pressure in the suction conduit reaches a predetermined minimum, a pump, a motor for driving it, a suction conduit between the pump and the valve and in communication with the discharge chamber in the valve housing, a pressureactuated switch adapted, under certain condi tions, to stop motor operation, a connection between said pressure-actuated switch and the suction conduit between the pump and the valve whereby, when the pressure in the suction conduit reaches a predetermined minimum, the switch is operated to stop motor operation.

5. In combination a receptacle adapted to contain a liquid, a discharge pipe leading therefrom in such position that when liquid is contained within the receptacle, a hydraulic pressure head is maintained within the pipe, a valve housing including intake and discharge chambers, an apertured wall separating them, and a valve adapted to close the aperture, a float chamber communicating with the intake chamber in the valv housing, a float within such chamber, and a connection between the float and the valve contained within the two chambers whereby as long as the hydraulic pressure head is maintained within the pipe, liquid will raise the float in the float chamber to open the valve, a pipe extending from the discharge chamber in the valve housing, a pump in communication with the pipe, a motor for actuating the pump, a pressure-actuated element connected to the pipe between the valve and the motor whereby the reduction in the pressure caused by pump operation, with the valve closed, stops the operation of the motor.

6. In combination a pump, a motor adapted to operate the pump, a pressure-controlled switch adapted to control th operation of the motor, a valve housing, and a pipe providing a connection between the motor, the valve housing and the pressure-actuated switch, the valve housing containing a discharge chamber communicating with the pipe leading to the pump, an intake chamber in the valve housing, a pipe leading therefrom to 1 a source of fluid supply, a float chamber connected with the intake chamber of the valve housing, a port between the intake and exhaust chambers, a valve adapted to close said port, a float in the float chamber, and a valve-operating connection between the float and the valve, the relative position of float, float chamber and source of liquid being such that when the liquid is exhausted from the liquid-containing source, the liquid level in the float chamber falls sufliciently to cause the float to close the valve, whereby pump operation reduces the pressure applied to the pressure-controlled valve to stop motor operation.

GEORGE C. DAVIS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the flle of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 880,761 Smith, et a1 Mar. 3, 1908 1,067,903 Elliott July 22, 1913' 1,268,917 Blackstone June 11, 1918 I 1,421,409 Comader July 4, 1922- 1,482,238 Lewis Jan. 29, 1924 1,568,500 Oomader Jan. 5, 1926 1,604,492 Smith Oct. 26, 1926 

